Editorial: Thumbs

To preserving old homes.

Thanks to Gwen Reiss for taking care of and improving the beautiful Victorian home at 510 W. Main St. in Albert Lea since 1996. Thanks to her, that home is now popularly known as the Turtle Dove. She ran the former boarding house as a coffee and gift shop that hosted special events. The Albert Lea Tribune even held its holiday party there a couple of times, as did many other businesses and organizations. The 1880 home this week was sold to Julie Cincoski and her fiancé Lennie Aquilera. We look forward to seeing continued care of that house, and we want to send our appreciation to anyone who maintains or improves an older house. It’s often a thankless task, but know that local history fans do appreciate the work.

To idiots trying to start a race war.

Here is the truth about people like the loser who allegedly hatched a plot to blow up the Mexican consulate in St. Paul in a hare-brained idea to spark a race war: These sort of people don’t mix with enough segments of society to realize that far, far more people in America are unconcerned about race and skin color than there are people who judge people in that bigoted, backward way. America is a melting pot, and though there have been people who always battle immigration in various forms, this country has a better track record of welcoming people from foreign places than it does of turning them away. There’s no changing that. Legality in immigration is an issue that need to be resolved, but that matter ought to have nothing to do with race or country of origin. People from other countries always have and always will move here

To Emmons.

The organizers of Borderfest in this border town have a good idea planned. They will have a shuttle to and from Skyline Plaza and Emmons planned to carry people who wish to attend their annual town festival. Not only should the bus plan bring more people to the festival, it will reduce the likelihood of drunken driving. People can read about Borderfest and other coming community festivals in the Albert Lea Tribune on June 6 in annual special guidebook to fun called Summer Times. It is exclusively available in the Tribune’s print edition. Having a subscription has its perks.